14 DAY TRIAL // Yahoo is moving everyone over to the new Mail. The old Mail Classic, which has been around since 1997, is being killed off as are all the other versions of the site that Yahoo was still keeping around.
From now on, it's the new "Marissa-Mayer" Yahoo Mail or nothing. Web companies have been "upgrading" users kicking and screaming to newer versions of their products for a while now, but Yahoo was an exception to the norm with its support for legacy versions of Mail.
But the new Yahoo aims to move fast and decisively. The new Yahoo Mail is a huge upgrade in most respects from any previous version.
However, it does come with one new "feature" that some – if not most – users may not like, even if it's not as bad as it sounds.
The new Yahoo Mail can scan a message's content to display relevant ads next to it. Google has been doing this in Gmail since its launch in 2004.
While the issue was controversial at first, it died down, at least until last year when Microsoft came up with the brilliant Scroogle marketing campaign.
But the issue is "controversial" again, all of a sudden, now that Yahoo is doing the same. It's unclear whether Microsoft will launch a similar campaign against its search partner, perhaps titled "Scrohoo."
Yahoo may not have started showing targeted ads in Mail, but it does give itself the power via the new Terms of Service that users have to agree to if they want to upgrade to the new Mail.
"When you upgrade, you will be accepting our Communications Terms of Service and Privacy Policy. This includes the acceptance of automated content scanning and analyzing of your communications content, which Yahoo! uses to deliver product features, relevant advertising, and abuse protection," Yahoo explained.
But the fact that it has added the language to the Terms of Service likely means that it plans to. Luckily, the feature is optional and users can opt out of targeted ads.